Several UA students have put their academic interest and creativity to the test during their stay at the Capstone by creating classes of their own that other students have the ability to take.

The process of creating new courses starts at the academic department level and is then approved by their respective colleges, interim Provost Joe Benson said.

“A student who wishes to propose a course would have to find an academic home and identity a qualified instructor to teach the course,” Benson said. “That instructor would then propose the course through his or her department.”

One student, Madalyn Vaughn, a junior majoring in accounting and public relations, created a new course called PlanFirst with the help of her brother, Wesley, after taking a Moral Forum class in fall 2011 .

“We are both interested in city planning and development and came up with the idea after becoming involved in the Tuscaloosa Forward plan following the April 27, 2011 tornado,” Vaughn said. “This class has given students an opportunity to be engaged in the city they now call home by allowing them to meet city officials and by giving the students rare insight into the city planning process, something that is not prevalent in the University’s offered courses.”

Vaughn said when the course is taught, which is set up into a lecture series through the Honors College and the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, her main role is to facilitate class discussion.

“Beyond lectures, the students will be put into groups based off similar interests in the planning process and begin working on a final presentation for the city,” she said. “This past fall the focus was the Strip and students focused on a certain aspect of the area they believed could be improved and used their skills from their particular major for their presentation.”

Vaughn explained that PlanFirst’s major success in its first semester came after the students were able to share their presentation with Mayor Maddox and other city officials.

“Each student group presented their analysis ideas and Maddox led a discussion regarding when they may see their ideas put to action,” she said.

Stephen Black, director for the Center of Ethics and Social Responsibility, is a co-instructor for the course alongside Tuscaloosa city planner John McConnell.

“Madalyn and her brother proposed the development of PlanFirst, a unique service-learning course, to facilitate a partnership between UA students and the city of Tuscaloosa,” Black said. “They developed the syllabus, recruited guest lecturers and identified readings and films relevant to the course.”

Black said granting students the freedom and resources to dream up and develop new courses helps students become more engaged in their coursework and their community.

“It gives them the opportunity to move beyond just hearing and regurgitating material for tests and encourages them to think deeply about systemic problems and possible solutions,” he said.

Black explained the Honors College and New College allow students and faculty the opportunity to work together to create innovative courses.

“Our staff members enjoy helping students turn their passions into long-term initiatives and guiding students and faculty through the service-learning course development process,” Black said.